The IT industry is awash with jargon and acronyms – BYOD, CYOD, COPE, PaaS, IaaS, SaaS, … the list goes on. And now we have Fog Computing.
Depending on who you talk to Fog Computing is either the next big thing or it’s nothing new. Looking back on my 20 years’ experience in the industry, there’s very little that’s genuinely new in IT – it’s normally an iteration of something that’s gone before. In my view this is where fog computing sits. It’s a fundamentally useful concept but as with much in our industry care needs to be taken not to rename something just for the sake of doing so.
At the end of the day, Fog is still Cloud. It’s about pushing data into the cloud – or other places on the network – but with a requirement for some kind of interaction at the edge. There are many companies doing Fog, but without necessarily realising that’s what they’re doing.
As an IT industry, we are doing a pretty good job of over-complicating things. Cloud computing is a case in point and much of the market has yet to get grips with it. As the economy continues its slow (but sure) recovery it’s important for resellers to place the right strategic emphasis on the technology that will drive their business…and open new revenue streams. Cloud computing could provide the answer – but only if it’s well-understood. And that’s where VADs come in.
In addition to helping drive end-user opportunities through qualified pipelines, a true VAD will help to educate its resellers and empower them to differentiate themselves by providing a more holistic solution to their customers. Whether that’s through webinars, sales cheat sheets, e-shot collateral – the VAD’s role is to cut through industry jargon and enable its partners to have a meaningful conversation with their customers. If you’re still in a fog about Cloud, you might want to rethink who you’re partnering with.
A recent article here sums up the situation, he wrote: Fog Computing only serves to increase confusion about the cloud. I recently saw a trailer for a new movie called “Sex Tape” where a private, intimate video is accidentally uploaded to the cloud and a frantic couple tries to retrieve all the iPads that synced to the cloud and thus received the video. My favorite dialogue in the trailer is when Jason Segel says, “It went up, it went up to the cloud.” Cameron Diaz sarcastically responds, “And you can’t get it down from the cloud?” To which he angrily blurts, “Nobody understands the cloud! It’s a [F-word] mystery!”
I pretty much agree with Jason Segel’s sentiment except that I’d say although it applies to most – it’s not all. There are pockets of knowledge out there and awareness is growing. But if today you find yourself in a fog about cloud computing, had enough of industry jargon and want to understand what it can do for you in plain English, give me a call.
Adam Davison, director of Cloud Distribution
http://www.microscope.co.uk/opinion/Confusion-in-the-cloud
distributing next generation security and networking solutions
